Systems and methods for providing context to customer activity through a visual representation

ABSTRACT

A system and method provide context to customer activity through a visual representation. In one implementation, a system may include one or more memory devices storing instructions. The system may also include one or more processors configured to execute the instructions to receive transaction data associated with a customer, and receive a request to generate a visual representation of a trip taken by the customer. The one or more processors may also be configured to determine transactions associated with a trip taken by the customer based on at least the transaction data, and generate a visual representation of the trip, the visual representation including the transactions.

PRIORITY CLAIM

This application claims priority under 35 U.S.C. § 119 to U.S.Provisional Application No. 61/944,837, filed on Feb. 26, 2014, which isexpressly incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The disclosed embodiments generally relate to systems and methods forproviding context to customer activity, and more particularly, tosystems and methods for providing context to customer activity through avisual representation.

BACKGROUND

Financial service providers generally allow customers to review theirfinancial activity by viewing lists of transactions that were processedthrough one or more financial accounts. For example, customers may viewbank statements that list automated transaction descriptionscorresponding to various completed financial transactions. Theinformation contained in the transaction descriptions may be useful fora variety of reasons. For example, the information may serve as a recordof activity that the customer engaged in over a period of time. A recordof financial activity may be valuable to the customer for financialreasons, such as when it is used to identify and prevent fraud, and forpersonal reasons, as the record may tell a story about an event, such aswhat the customer did while on vacation.

Current technology, however, may not allow a customer to easily andefficiently view financial activity in a meaningful way. For example,bank statements will often only list transaction descriptions byprocessing date, and in such a way that the corresponding transactionmay not be easily identifiable by the customer. Therefore, a need existsfor tools that use available data to allow customers to view and usetheir financial activity in a convenient and productive manner.

SUMMARY

Consistent with a disclosed embodiment, a system for providing a visualrepresentation of customer activity is provided. The system may includeone or more memory devices storing instructions. The system may alsoinclude one or more processors configured to execute the instructions toreceive transaction data associated with a customer, and receive arequest to generate a visual representation of a trip taken by thecustomer. The one or more processors may also be configured to anddetermine transactions associated with the trip based on at least thetransaction data, and generate a visual representation of the trip, thevisual representation including the transactions.

Consistent with another disclosed embodiment, a computer-implementedmethod for providing a visual representation of customer activity isprovided. The method may include receiving transaction data associatedwith a customer, and determining, by one or more processors,transactions associated with a trip taken by the customer based on atleast the transaction data. The method may also include categorizing, bythe one or more processors, the transactions into sub-groupscorresponding to stops made during the trip. The method may furtherinclude associating, by the one or more processors, at least one imagewith the transaction data, and generating, by the one or moreprocessors, a visual representation of the trip, the visualrepresentation identifying the trip, each stop on the trip, and each oftransactions and including the at least one associated image.

Consistent with other disclosed embodiments, tangible computer-readablestorage media may store program instructions that are executable by oneor more processors to implement any of the processes disclosed herein.

It is to be understood that both the foregoing general description andthe following detailed description are exemplary and explanatory only,and are not restrictive of the disclosed embodiments.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated in and constitute apart of this specification, illustrate several embodiments and, togetherwith the description, serve to explain the disclosed principles. In thedrawings:

FIG. 1 is a block diagram of an exemplary system, consistent withdisclosed embodiments;

FIG. 2 is a block diagram of an exemplary server, consistent withdisclosed embodiments;

FIG. 3 is a flowchart of an exemplary process for providing transactiondata for use in generating a visual representation, consistent withdisclosed embodiments;

FIG. 4 is a flowchart of an exemplary process for providing a visualrepresentation of transaction data, consistent with disclosedembodiments;

FIG. 5 is a schematic illustration of exemplary user interfaces,consistent with disclosed embodiments; and

FIG. 6 is an illustration of exemplary user interfaces, consistent withdisclosed embodiments.

DESCRIPTION OF THE EMBODIMENTS

Reference will now be made in detail to exemplary embodiments, examplesof which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings and disclosedherein. Wherever convenient, the same reference numbers will be usedthroughout the drawings to refer to the same or like parts.

Disclosed embodiments provide systems and methods for providing a visualrepresentation of customer activity. In some embodiments, the visualrepresentation may be related to a particular subset of customeractivity that is particularly applicable to a visual representation. Forexample, certain embodiments may focus on customer financial activitythat occurs away from a customer's home area (e.g., when a customer ison a trip away from home, such as a vacation or business trip). Itshould be understood, however, that certain aspects disclosed herein arenot limited to any particular customer activity.

FIG. 1 shows an exemplary system 100 that may be configured to performone or more processes consistent with disclosed embodiments. In certainaspects, one or more components of system 100 may be configured toexecute one or more software processes to provide one or more aspects ofthe disclosed embodiments. The components and arrangement shown in FIG.1 is not intended to be limiting to the disclosed embodiment as thecomponents used to implement the processes and features disclosed heremay vary.

In accordance with disclosed embodiments, system 100 may include aclient device 110, a merchant device 120, a financial service providerdevice 130, an image storage device 140, and a network 150. Othercomponents known to one of ordinary skill in the art may additionally oralternatively be included in system 100 to process, transmit, provide,and receive information consistent with the disclosed embodiments.

Client device 110 may be one or more computer systems. For example,client device 110 may include a desktop computer, a laptop computer, amobile device with computing ability (e.g., smart phone, tablet, etc.),a server, any combination of these computers and/or affiliatedcomponents, etc. In one embodiment, client device 110 may be a computersystem or device that is operated by a user 112.

Client device 110 may be configured with memory devices that store oneor more operating systems that perform known operating system functionswhen executed by one or more processors. By way of example, theoperating systems may include Microsoft Windows™, Unix™, Linux™, Apple™Computers type operating systems, mobile operating systems, such asApple iOS™ or an Android™ operating system, Personal Digital Assistant(PDA) type operating systems, such as Microsoft CE™, or other types ofoperating systems. Accordingly, embodiments of the disclosed inventionwill operate and function with computer systems running any type ofoperating system. Client device 110 may also include memory devicesstoring communication software that, when executed by a processor,allows client device 110 to communicate with network 150, such as Webbrowser software, tablet, or smart hand held device networking software,etc. Client device 110 may be a device that executes mobileapplications, such as a tablet or mobile device. In some embodiments,client device 110 may be configured to take and/or store images such aspictures taken with a camera.

Merchant device 120 may be one or more computer systems associated witha merchant or other third party. Merchant device 120 may include one ormore computing systems that are configured to performcomputer-implemented processes, such as a server, desktop, laptop,mobile device, etc. Merchant device 120 may be associated with an entitythat transacts with customers. For example, the merchant may be anentity that provides goods and/or services (e.g., a retail store). WhileFIG. 1 shows one merchant device 120 in system 100, the disclosedembodiments may be implemented in a system involving a single merchantor multiple merchants (e.g., two or more merchants). In one embodiment,the merchant may include brick-and-mortar location(s) that a customer(e.g., user 112) may physically visit and purchase goods and services.Such physical locations may include computing devices that performfinancial service transactions with consumers (e.g., POS terminal(s),kiosks, etc.). Merchant device 120 may be associated with a merchant whoprovides electronic shopping mechanisms, such as a website or a similaronline location that consumers (e.g., user 112) may access using acomputer (e.g., client device 110) through browser software, a mobileapplication, or similar software. Merchant device 120 may includecomputing devices that may include back and/or front-end computingcomponents that process transactions and store consumer transaction dataand execute software instructions to perform operations consistent withthe disclosed embodiments, such as computers that are operated byemployees of a merchant (e.g., back-office systems, etc.).

In accordance with certain aspects of the disclosed embodiments, one ormore computing devices associated with merchant device 120 may beconfigured to store customer transaction data associated with thebusiness conducted at the merchant. In some aspects, customers may makepayments with payment cards (e.g., credit card, debit card, etc.) issuedby a financial service provider for the goods/services provided by themerchant. In other aspects, consumers may make the payment by cash orother type of payment. In both situations, one or more computing devicesassociated with merchant device 120 may be configured to store theconsumer transaction data and provide the data to a financial serviceprovider, such as the financial service provider associated with theform of payment used by the consumer.

Financial service provider device 130 may be one or more computersystems associated with an entity that provides financial services. Forexample, the entity may be a bank, credit union, credit card issuer, orother type of financial service entity that generates, provides,manages, and/or maintains financial service accounts for one or moreusers. Financial service accounts may include, for example, credit cardaccounts, checking accounts, savings accounts, loan accounts, rewardaccounts, and any other types of financial service account known tothose skilled in the art. Financial service accounts may be associatedwith physical financial service account cards, such as a credit or checkcard that a user may carry on their person and use to perform financialservice transactions, such as purchasing goods and/or services at apoint of sale (POS) terminal. Financial service accounts may also beassociated with electronic financial products and services, such as adigital wallet or similar account that may be used to perform electronictransactions, such as purchasing goods and/or services online. Financialservice provider device 130 may include infrastructure and componentsthat are configured to generate and provide financial service accountsand financial service account cards (e.g., credit cards, check cards,etc.). Financial service provider device 130 may also includeinfrastructures and components that are configured to store transactiondata associated with the financial service accounts. It should beunderstood, however, that financial service provider device 130 may beany device that stores and/or provides access to transaction data, andmay not be directly associated with an entity that maintains financialservice accounts.

Consistent with disclosed embodiments, financial service provider device130 may be configured to provide customers with access to financial datareflecting personal purchasing activity via client device 110. Forexample, financial service provider device 130 may transmit financialtransaction data to client device 110 for display to the customer.

Image storage device 140 may be one or more computer and/or storagesystems configured to receive and store images, such as cameraphotographs, drawings, videos, or other captured and/or createdpictures. In an exemplary embodiment, components of system 100 (e.g.,client device 110) may be configured to access images and correspondingcontextual information stored in image storage device(s) 140. Forexample, client device 110 may access images stored directly by clientdevice 110 or a connected component, and/or images accessible vianetwork 150.

In one example, image storage device 140 may include a device thatstores images captured and/or created by user 112. For example, user 112may operate a camera to capture an image, which image storage device 140may store in a memory and/or database. In an exemplary embodiment, imagestorage device 140 may be a component of client device 110, such as amemory of a smart phone or tablet that has a built-in camera. User 112may operate client device 110 to capture and/or create an image, whichmay be transmitted to and stored with image storage device 140.

In an exemplary embodiment, image storage device 140 may associateidentifying contextual information with each image captured and/orcreated by user 112. For example, image storage device 140 may associatetime and date information (e.g., time and/or date the image wascaptured/created), geographic location information (e.g., city, state,country, zip code, latitude/longitude information, GPS coordinates,etc.) indicating a location at which the image was captured/created,and/or other identifying information (e.g., user-entered informationsuch as image titles and/or descriptions, tags of people, places, and/orthings in the image, etc.) with each stored image.

In another example, image storage device 140 may include a computersystem, such as a server and/or other computing device, which stores oneor more images that were not necessarily captured or created by user112. For example, image storage device 140 may store an image orcollection of images associated with various places (e.g., particularstreets, cities, states, etc.), entities (e.g., merchants, attractions,brands, etc.), and/or a combination of these (e.g., particular merchantlocations) that are publically available. In an exemplary embodiment,the image(s) may be stored and accessible via network 150, such as theInternet and/or one or more application program interfaces (APIs).Examples of collections of images that may be stored by one or moreimage storage devices 140 include those associated with Flickr™, GoogleStreet View™, and/or similar web-based image services. Image storagedevice 140 may associate identifying contextual information, such asinformation indicating what is depicted in the image (e.g., places,entities, people, things, etc.), with these images, also.

Network 150 may be any type of network that provides communications,exchanges information, and/or facilitates the exchange of informationbetween client device 110, merchant device 120, financial serviceprovider device 130, and/or image storage device 140. In one embodiment,network 150 may be the Internet, a Local Area Network, or other suitableconnection(s) that enables system 100 to send and receive informationbetween the components of system 100. In other embodiments, one or morecomponents of system 100 may communicate directly through a dedicatedcommunication link(s) (not shown), such as a link between client device110 and financial service provider device 130.

FIG. 2 depicts a server 200, consistent with disclosed embodiments. Inan exemplary embodiment, financial service provider device 130 mayinclude server 200. It should be understood, however, that althoughserver 200 may be depicted and described herein as a component offinancial service provider device 130 for ease of discussion, server 200or variations thereof may be used alternatively or additionally byclient device 110, merchant device 120, and/or other components ofsystem 100 (shown and not shown) to perform processes consistent withdisclosed embodiments.

In one embodiment, server 200 may include one or more processors 210,one or more input/output (I/O) devices 220, and one or more memories230. Server 200 may take the form of a mobile computing device, generalpurpose computer, a mainframe computer, or any combination of thesecomponents. According to some embodiments, server 200 may comprise webserver(s) or similar computing devices that generate, maintain, andprovide web site(s) consistent with disclosed embodiments. Server 200may be standalone, or it may be part of a subsystem, which may be partof a larger system. For example, server 200 may represent distributedservers that are remotely located and communicate over a network (e.g.,network 150) or a dedicated network, such as a LAN.

Processor 210 may include one or more known processing devices, such asa microprocessor from the Pentium™ or Xeon™ family manufactured byIntelm, the Turion™ family manufactured by AMD™, or any of variousprocessors manufactured by Sun Microsystems. The disclosed embodimentsare not limited to any type of processor(s) configured in server 200.

I/O devices 220 may be one or more devices configured to allow data tobe received and/or transmitted by server 200. I/O devices 220 mayinclude one or more user I/O devices and/or components, such as thoseassociated with a keyboard, mouse, touchscreen, display, etc. I/Odevices 220 may also include one or more digital and/or analogcommunication devices that allow server 200 to communicate with othermachines and devices, such as other components of system 100.

In some embodiments of server 200, such as in the case of client device110 including one or more of the components depicted in FIG. 2, I/Odevices 220 may include interface hardware configured to display one ormore user interfaces. For example, the interface hardware may include adisplay screen (including touchscreens) that allow a user to viewinformation and interact (e.g., provide input). It should be understood,that a user interface may “display” information through the interfacehardware.

Memory 230 may include one or more storage devices configured to storeinstructions used by processor 210 to perform functions related todisclosed embodiments. For example, memory 230 may be configured withone or more software instructions associated with programs and/or data.Memory 230 may include a single program that performs the functions ofthe server 200, or multiple programs. Additionally, processor 210 mayexecute one or more programs located remotely from server 200. Forexample, client device 110, merchant device 120, financial serviceprovider device 130, and/or image storage device 140, may, via server200, access one or more remote programs that, when executed, performfunctions related to disclosed embodiments. Memory 230 may also storedata that may reflect any type of information in any format that thesystem may use to perform operations consistent with the disclosedembodiments.

Server 200 may also be communicatively connected to one or moredatabase(s) 240. For example, server 200 may be communicativelyconnected to database(s) 240 through network 150. Database 240 mayinclude one or more memory devices that store information and areaccessed and/or managed through server 200. By way of example,database(s) 240 may include Oracle™ databases, Sybase™ databases, orother relational databases or non-relational databases, such as Hadoopsequence files, HBase, or Cassandra. The databases or other files mayinclude, for example, data and information related to the source anddestination of a network request, the data contained in the request,etc. Systems and methods of disclosed embodiments, however, are notlimited to separate databases. In one aspect, server 200 may includedatabase 240. Alternatively, database 240 may be located remotely fromthe server 200. Database 240 may include computing components (e.g.,database management system, database server, etc.) configured to receiveand process requests for data stored in memory devices of database(s)240 and to provide data from database 240.

In an exemplary embodiment, server 200 may be configured to receiveand/or store transaction data. Transaction data may be data associatedwith one or more financial transactions made by a customer. For example,a customer may visit a physical location associated with a merchantdevice 120 (e.g., a retail store) and make a purchase using a debit orcredit card. The merchant device 120 may receive and/or generatetransaction data associated with the purchase. Other examples offinancial transactions may include, for example, one or more purchasetransactions via an online merchant device 120 (e.g., onlinetransactions involving a Web site provided by one or more serversassociated with the merchant), one or more Automated Teller Machine(ATM) transactions (e.g., fund withdrawal, account status check, billpayment, deposit transaction, etc.), one or more financial servicetransactions that takes place at a physical location of associated withfinancial service provider device 130, such as, for example, a branch ofa financial service provider (e.g., fund withdrawal, bill payment,deposit transaction, account status check, etc. at a branch location ofa bank), one or more financial service transactions (e.g., fundwithdrawal, bill payment, deposit transaction, account status check,etc.) involving an online banking system associated with financialservice provider device 130 (e.g., a Web site that provides financialservices for customers of the financial service provider), one or moretransactions involving the use of a mobile application, such as forexample, where client device 110 is a smart phone or tablet thatexecutes a mobile application that allows the customer to perform one ormore transactions (e.g., online banking transactions, merchantpurchases, etc.), and the like.

In certain embodiments, merchant device 120 may transmit transactiondata associated with financial transactions to financial serviceprovider device 130 for storage and/or subsequent use. For example, acustomer (e.g., user 112) may use a debit card associated with afinancial account to transact with a merchant (e.g., make a purchase)and merchant device 120 (e.g., a point of sale device associated withthe merchant) may communicate with financial service provider device 130to verify and complete the purchase. Merchant device 120 may transmittransaction data to financial service provider device 130 during thecommunication.

In some embodiments, financial service provider device 130 may receivetransaction information from an automated clearing house (ACH) device.An ACH device may be a computing device associated with an entity (e.g.,clearing house) that processes transactions. The ACH device may receiveinformation about transactions that occur between merchants andcustomers (e.g., from point of sale devices) and may perform processesto complete the transactions. For example, the ACH device may receivetransaction descriptions from merchant devices associated with a debitcard or credit card purchase at the merchant and communicate withfinancial service provider devices to complete the transactions (e.g.,arrange for the transfer of funds) or otherwise notify financial serviceprovider device 130 of the transaction. In the process, the ACH devicemay transmit transaction data to financial service provider device 130,which financial service provider device 130 may store.

In other embodiments, stored transaction data may include transactiondata received by another component of system 100, such as client device110. For example, a customer (e.g., user 112) may use client device 110to transmit information regarding financial transactions that areunknown to financial service provider device 130 (e.g., cashtransactions, transactions using financial accounts not associated withfinancial service provider 130, etc.). Similarly, merchant device 120,client device 110, and/or other components of system 100 may transmitadditional information regarding transactions not typically included intransaction data received by financial service provider device 130 aspart of authorizing the underlying transaction.

Transaction data may include information related to a particular aspectof the transaction. For example, transaction data may include timeinformation relating to a time when the financial transaction wasperformed (e.g., when a purchase transaction was initiated, completed,or processed for payment, etc.); date information relating to a datewhen the financial transaction was performed (e.g., informationreflecting the day, month, year, and/or day of week, etc.); fund amountinformation relating to a monetary amount involved in the financialtransaction, such as, for example, the purchase amount for a purchasetransaction, the deposit amount for a deposit transaction, a withdrawalamount for a withdrawal transaction, etc.; merchant or third partyinformation relating to a transaction (e.g., brand name of themerchant); location information relating to the location of where thefinancial transaction occurred, such as, for example, geographiclocation information (e.g., city, state, country, zip code,latitude/longitude information, GPS coordinates, etc.) of a merchantwhere the customer performed a purchase transaction, a financial serviceprovider location (e.g., bank branch), or the customer's location whenperforming an online financial transaction; customer identifyinginformation (customer name, identification number, account number); orany other type of information associated with a financial transaction.

The configuration of system 100 described herein allows the componentsof system 100 to collect transaction data, which may be used to providecustomers with financial services related to their financial activity.

FIG. 3 illustrates an exemplary process 300, consistent with disclosedembodiments. In one embodiment, one or more of the components of system100 may perform process 300 to provide transaction data for use ingenerating a visual representation of the data. A visual representationmay allow customers to review their financial activity in an efficientand convenient manner.

Financial service provider device 130 may collect initial transactiondata (step 310). As has been described, transaction data may begenerated when a customer performs a transaction. For example, acustomer may make a purchase at a retail store or restaurant. A merchantdevice 120 associated with the purchase may generate transaction datawhich includes information such as purchase time and date, merchantname, purchase amount, etc. This data may be considered initialtransaction data. Merchant device 120 may transmit the initialtransaction data to financial service provider device 130, such as tocomplete a credit or debit card transaction. In some instances,financial service provider device 130 may receive initial transactiondata from other sources, such as client device 110, an ACH device, auser using an I/O device, etc.

A typical customer may perform several transactions throughout a givenday and/or week, each of which may cause a corresponding merchant device120 (or other device) to transmit initial transaction data to financialservice provider device 130. For example, a customer may travel on atrip, using a debit or credit card to make payments along the way.Financial service provider device 130 may gather the initial transactiondata associated with the transactions and store the data in associationwith the customer (e.g., in association with a customer financialaccount).

Financial service provider device 130 may process received initialtransaction data to generate enhanced transaction data (step 320). Dueto the wide range of potential financial transactions and associatedparties to the transactions (e.g., different merchants, types ofmerchants, types of transactions, etc.), the initial transaction dataassociated with a particular transaction or set of transaction may beinconsistent across transactions. For example, initial transaction dataassociated with some transactions may include more pieces of information(e.g., merchant name, merchant location, SKU-level data, etc.) thanothers. Further, initial transaction data associated with sometransactions may include non-useful information, such as alphanumericstrings that are only relevant to a merchant that generates them.

Financial service provider device 130 may include hardware and/orsoftware components configured to receive initial transaction dataassociated with transactions and enhance the data such that theinformation associated with each transaction is more organized,comprehensive, and/or consistent across transactions. Financial serviceprovider device 130 may parse transaction data and determine thetransaction information that is present, as well as the transactioninformation that is missing. Financial service provider device 130 mayextract the transaction information and index it according to categoriesof information. For example, financial service provider device 130 maydetermine that initial transaction data associated with a particulartransaction includes information that could be categorized as merchantname, city location, the amount of the purchase, the time of thepurchase, the date of the purchase, the identity of the customer, etc.

In addition, financial service provider device 130 may perform one ormore processes to add transaction information not included with theinitial transaction data. For example, financial service provider device130 may be configured to determine a zip code associated with themerchant location indicated by another piece of information in theinitial transaction data, such as the name of the city location of themerchant. In another example, financial service provider device 130 maygenerate a request for user input, which may be presented to andresponded to by the user (e.g., user 112, an employee of a financialservice provider, etc.) via client device 110, merchant device 120,financial service provider device 130, etc., in order to receive missingor additional transaction information. Financial service provider device130 may also remove non-useful information from the transactiondescriptions.

The processed initial transaction data may be stored as enhancedtransaction data. The enhanced transaction data may be in a bettercondition compared to the initial transaction data for use in providingfinancial services. For example, it may be easier to generate visualrepresentations of transaction data using enhanced transaction data,since transaction data associated with various transactions may be moreorganized (e.g., into categories of known information), comprehensive,and/or consistent (e.g., the same information is known for eachtransaction). It should be understood however, that step 320 may beomitted if initial transaction data is sufficient to provide aparticular financial service, if the initial transaction data cannot beenhanced (e.g., all available data is provided with the initialtransaction data), and/or if enhancing of initial transaction data isunavailable.

Returning to process 300, financial service provider device 130 maytransmit transaction data to client device 110 (step 330). Thetransaction data may include enhanced transaction data and/or initialtransaction data, depending on the data available. In some embodiments,client device 110 may be configured to enhance (or further enhance)initial transaction data. The transaction data may be associated withuser 112. For example, the transaction data may be associated withfinancial transactions made by user 112. In an exemplary embodiment, thetransaction data may include transaction information that includes atleast a transaction amount (e.g., payment/purchase amount), transactiontime and date, merchant name, card present/absent, andtransaction/merchant location (e.g., city, state, and/or zip wheretransaction took place, which may correspond to a merchant location),although additional or alternative transaction information may be used.

In an exemplary embodiment, client device 110 may use the transactiondata to provide a financial service to user 112 (step 340). Clientdevice 110 may provide the customer service through an I/O device suchas an interactive user interface. In some embodiments, the userinterface may be associated with software program, such as a mobileapplication accessible on a mobile device. In an exemplary embodiment,client device 110 may use the transaction data to generate and display avisual representation of the data.

FIG. 4 depicts an exemplary process 400, consistent with disclosedembodiments. In an exemplary embodiment, financial service providerdevice 130 may perform process 400 to generate and display a visualrepresentation of transaction data. Process 400 may include financialservice provider device 130 selecting transaction data (step 410). Insome embodiments, financial service provider device 130 may selecttransaction data in response to a received request, which may be fromclient device 110. Client device 110 may receive the request fromanother component of system 100 and/or user 112, for example.

In some embodiments, financial service provider device 130 may transmitselected transaction data to client device 110. In these embodiments,client device 110 may perform some or all of the processes describedbelow (e.g., instead of financial service provider device 130).

In some embodiments, user 112 may operate client device 110 to request aparticular service, which may be transmitted to financial serviceprovider device 130 to indicate the transaction data that should beselected and/or transmitted back to client device 110. For example,client device 110 may request selection of transaction data associatedwith all transactions, all transactions associated with a particularfinancial account, all transactions within a given time period, etc. Insome embodiments, client device 110 may transmit a request and/orreceive transaction data over network 150, for example.

Financial service provider device 130 may process selected transactiondata to determine data or sets of data that may be used in the visualrepresentation. In an exemplary embodiment, financial service providerdevice 130 may parse the received transaction data to find transactionsassociated with customer trips (step 420). Customer trips may be definedby a set of transactions that take place while a customer is travelingaway from their home area. For example, a customer trip may include avacation, a business trip, a road trip, a move, a trip to visit friendsor family, and/or similar trips in which the customer is away from areasin which they are normally located (e.g., home, work, school, etc.).

Financial service provider device 130 may identify customer trips byanalyzing received transaction data to look for transaction informationthat indicates that a transaction occurred while the customer was on atrip. For example, financial service provider device 130 may analyzetransaction information corresponding to transaction time and date andtransaction location. Financial service provider device 130 may usetransaction time and date information to determine a chronological orderin which transactions took place. Financial service provider device 130may use transaction location information to categorize transactions aseither “home” or “away”. In one example, home transactions maycorrespond to transactions that take place within the customer's homearea. The customer's home area may be defined in any manner. Forexample, the customer's home area may be defined as the area including aspecified radius around the customer's home address, an areacorresponding to one or more zip codes near the user's home, thecustomer's home city or state, the customer's country, etc. Financialservice provider device 130 may use the specified definition of “home”and determine whether transaction data indicates that an associatedtransaction should be categorized as home or away, where “away”transactions are any transactions that do not take place within thecustomer's home area.

In an exemplary embodiment, financial service provider device 130 mayanalyze the transaction data, which may be in chronological order and/ormay be categorized as home or away, to find customer trips. For example,financial service provider device 130 may determine that a cluster oftransactions that are each categorized as away and took placeconsecutively corresponds to a customer trip. In other words, for achronological list of transactions, a customer trip may begin with thefirst transaction that is categorized as away and end with the last awaytransaction before a home transaction. In some embodiments, a minimumnumber of transactions may be necessary (e.g., 2, 3, 4, 5, etc.) for acluster of transactions to be considered a customer trip. In someinstances, financial service provider device 130 may determine that acustomer may be currently on a trip, such as when the last transactionis an away transaction.

Financial service provider device 130 (and/or client device 110) mayfurther process transaction data associated with a trip to customize andgenerate a visual representation of the trip (step 430). For example,financial service provider device 130 may use transaction dataassociated with all the transactions that took place during a trip tofind, determine, calculate, and/or generate additional information thatmay be used in the visual representation. FIG. 4 further depictsexemplary steps that client device 110 may perform to customize a visualrepresentation of a trip.

In step 432, financial service provider device 130 may categorizetransactions associated with a trip into sub-groups of transactions. Inone example, financial service provider device 130 may grouptransactions of a trip into various places that were visited during thetrip (i.e., stops on the trip). For example, for a trip where thecustomer traveled to three different cities (completing transactions ineach city), the transactions may be placed into groups corresponding toeach city. Financial service provider device 130 may group thetransactions using transaction location information found in thetransaction data. In other examples, financial service provider device130 may group transactions according to other categories, such as typeof merchant (e.g., restaurant, gas station, entertainment, etc.), typeof transaction, amount of transaction, card present/absent, financialaccount used for transaction, etc.

In step 434, financial service provider device 130 and/or client device110 may associate images with the transaction data. For example,financial service provider device 130 and/or client device 110 mayassociate an image with each transaction that took place during thetrip. Financial service provider device 130 and/or client device 110 maycommunicate with image storage device(s) 140 to find one or more imagesthat correspond to individual transactions.

In a first example, client device 110 may take images from user 112'spersonal images, such as photographs that user 112 captured during thetrip and stored in an image storage device 140 (e.g., memory) connectedto client device 110. Client device 110 may match contextual informationassociated with an image to transaction data to determine that an imageis associated with a transaction. For example, client device 110 maymatch time, date, and location transaction information with an imagethat includes time, date, and location contextual information that isapproximately the same to find an image that corresponds to atransaction. For example, user 112 may take a photograph of his or herfood at a restaurant. The time, date, and location associated with thephotograph may approximately match the time, date, and location of apayment transaction with the restaurant. Client device 110 mayassociated the matched image with the transaction for use in the visualrepresentation. Client device 110 may communicate with financial serviceprovider device 130 to associate images stored on client device 110 withtransaction data processed by financial service provider 130.

In a second example, financial service provider device 130 may usepublically-available images, such as images available via network 150(e.g., the Internet), or images otherwise available to user 112 (e.g.,images stored on another client device, such as a home computer, orpersonal images stored in the cloud). For example, financial serviceprovider device 130 may use an API to communicate with an image storagedevice 140 that stores various images (e.g., images of variouslocations, buildings, people, etc.) and is publically-available (e.g.,Google Street View™ or Flickr™). Financial service provider device 130may use transaction information such as location information and/ormerchant name information to find a matching image. For example,financial service provider device 130 may find an image of a restaurantto associate with a transaction at that restaurant. In some aspects,financial service provider device 130 may use a publically-availableimage when no matching personal image is found.

In some embodiments, financial service provider device 130, clientdevice 110, and/or another component of system 100, may leverage data(e.g., metadata) associated with stored images (e.g., images stored onclient device 110 and/or available via network 150) to match an image toa transaction. Metadata may include, for example, geo-location (e.g.,latitude and longitude) and time stamp information associated with animage (e.g., an image captured with a camera, such as a digital camera),which may be compared to the geo-location and time stamp metadata of atransaction (e.g., a credit card transaction). In some embodiments, thecomparison may allow for some variation (e.g., matching geo-location andtime stamp to within a certain degree of accuracy) due to potentialinaccuracies (e.g., due to GPS limitations) and/or time periods andlocation gaps between when and where a transaction is recorded and apicture is captured.

In some embodiments, a component of system 100 (e.g., client device 110and/or financial service provider device 130) may filter image and/ortransaction metadata to allow for comparisons of like data. For example,client device 110 and/or financial service provider device 130 mayfilter image and/or transaction locations that are addresses todetermine corresponding geo-locations for a comparison with othergeo-locations.

In addition, in some embodiments, an iconic image captured at a nearbylocation (e.g., and image of a famous building or monument in aparticular city) may be selected as a match for a particulartransaction, such as when another image is not available.

In some embodiments, financial service provider device 130 and/or clientdevice 110 may associate images with other aspects of the trip and/orindividual transactions). For example, financial service provider device130 may associate one or more images with each group of transactionsfound in step 432 (e.g., each city the customer visited), withtransactions grouped according to other criteria, such as an evening out(e.g., Friday evening cab to dinner, dinner, a movie, and cab back home)or a particular activity (e.g., transactions associated with coffeepurchases), and/or with the trip itself. In this way, financial serviceprovider device 130 may provide additional context to transactionsassociated with a trip.

In step 436, financial service provider device 130 may use thetransaction data associated with a trip to calculate statisticsassociated with the customer's financial activity while on the trip. Forexample, financial service provider device 130 may calculate a summaryof total charges for the entire trip and total charges at each stopalong the trip (e.g., each city visited). In another example, financialservice provider device 130 may calculate totals for categories oftransactions completed during the trip, such as total amount spent onfood, gas, entertainment, etc. Financial service provider device 130 mayuse purchase amount transaction information found in the transactiondata to calculate the totals and/or other statistics.

In step 438, financial service provider device 130 may identifytransaction location information for each transaction such that thetransactions may be plotted on a map. For example, financial serviceprovider device may generate a map as part of a visual representation ofa trip, such as a map that depicts the location of each city visited ona trip, a map of a visited city that includes locations of eachtransaction, a map that includes a path indicating the customer's travelthroughout the trip, and/or the like.

After customization and generation of the visual representation, clientdevice 110 may display the visual representation of one or more tripsusing a user interface (step 440). For example, client device 110 maydisplay the visual representation on a screen connected to client device110. In some embodiments, financial service provider device may transmitinformation to client device 110 for use in displaying the generatedvisual representation.

In some embodiments, user 112 may subsequently operate client device 110to interact with the user interface and choose various aspects of thevisual representation for display (e.g., statistics for the trip,individual transactions, a map of the transactions, etc.).

FIG. 5 depicts a schematic illustration of a set of exemplary userinterfaces 500 on a client device 110, consistent with disclosedembodiments. User interfaces 500 may include various aspects of agenerated visual representation of a customer's (e.g., user 112)financial activity. It should be understood, however, that userinterfaces 500 are merely exemplary and that other arrangements andconfigurations may be used to provide a visual representation of acustomer's financial activity.

In an exemplary embodiment, client device 110 may display userinterfaces 500 to user 112. User 112 may operate client device 110 tointeract with user interfaces 500, such as to switch between exemplaryuser interfaces 510, 520, and 530. User interface 510 may display a listof one or more customer trips, such as customer trips 512, 514. Customertrips 512, 514 may be trips made by the customer and that weredetermined from transaction data associated with transactions thecustomer made while on the trip. For example, customer trip 512 may be avacation and customer trip 514 may be a business trip.

The display portions associated with each customer trip 512, and 514 mayinclude information that identifies the trip, provides calculatedstatistics (e.g., amount spent on the trip), length of time of the trip,etc. As shown in FIG. 5, each display portion associated with customertrips 512, 514 may include one or more images related to the respectivetrip. For example, customer trips 512, 514 may each include a display ofa photograph taken while on the trip, an image associated with the tripdestination, a map of the destination or the path taken on the trip, acollage of images, etc. The image(s) may allow the customer (e.g., user112) to quickly and easily identify the trip.

In an exemplary embodiment, client device 110 may be configured toreceive input from user 112 to interact with user interface 510, such asto allow user 112 to select one of customer trips 512 or 514 (e.g.,through a touch screen or mouse). If user 112 selects customer trip 512,client device 110 may perform one or more processes to display userinterface 520. In an exemplary embodiment, user interface 520 maydisplay a list of categorized sub-groups that were determined from thetransaction data associated with customer trip 512. For example, asshown in FIG. 5, user interface 520 may display a list of destinationstops 522, 524, 526 that the customer made while on customer trip 512.In an exemplary embodiment, stops 522, 524, 526 may correspond to citiesthat were visited during customer trip 512.

The display portions associated with each stop 522, 524, 526 may includeinformation that identifies the stop (e.g., city name), providescalculated statistics (e.g., amount spent in that city), length of timespent at that stop, etc. Similar to customer trips 512, 514, the displayportions associate with stops 522, 524, 526 may include one or moreimages related to the respective stop. For example, stops 522, 524, 526may each include an image of a city skyline associated with each stop, alandmark associated with each stop, a personal photograph taken at eachstop, a map of the city or the customer's travel path associated witheach stop, etc. The image(s) may allow the customer (e.g., user 112) toeasily differentiate between the stops (or other subcategories oftransactions) that were made during the trip.

In an exemplary embodiment, client device 110 may be configured toreceive additional input from user 112 to interact with user interface520, such as to allow user 112 to select one of stops 522, 524, or 526.For example, user 112 may select stop 522, which may cause client device110 to perform one or more processes to display user interface 530. Userinterface 530 may include a list of transactions 532, 534 that tookplace at stop 522. In some embodiments, user interface 520 may includean option that user 112 may select to cause client device 110 to displaya list of all transactions made during the trip (e.g., at all stops).

Display portions associated with transactions 532, 534 may includetransaction information associated with the respective transaction. Forexample, transaction amount, merchant name, transaction date and time,etc., may be displayed to the user for each transaction 532, 534. Inaddition, user interface 530 may display one or more images associatedwith a respective transaction 532, 534. For example, a photograph of thecustomer's food taken while he or she ate at a restaurant may bedisplayed in association with a restaurant transaction. Similarly, aphotograph of the customer at an amusement park may be displayed inassociation with a transaction corresponding to the amusement park entryfee. In other instances, general images of a hotel, a store, a gasstation, etc. or a brand logo may be displayed when personal images arenot available.

In some embodiments, user interface 530 may be configured such that user112 may operate client device 110 to interact with user interface 530.For example, client device 110 may receive input indicating that a useris selecting a particular transaction 532 or 534. Client device 110 mayperform one or more processes to modify user interface 530 or generateanother user interface that displays additional information, such asadditional transaction information associated with the transaction,additional images (e.g., a map indicating a location of thetransaction), and the like.

FIG. 6 depicts a particular illustration of a set of user interfaces 600on a client device 110, consistent with disclosed embodiments. In someembodiments, some or all of user interfaces 600 may be similar to userinterfaces 500 of FIG. 5. In an exemplary embodiment, client device 110may include one or more hardware and software components configured togenerate user interfaces 600. For example, client device 110 may be asmartphone with a processor configured to execute a mobile applicationthat may be used to generate user interfaces 600. User interfaces 600may include user interfaces 610, 620, 630, 640.

User interface 610 may be a login interface that allows a customer(e.g., user 112) to login to their account, which may be associated witha financial service provider. In this way, the customer may beauthenticated for viewing of financial activity.

User interface 620 may include a list of customer trips. For example,user interface 620 illustrates a trip “To San Francisco”, “To Chicago”,and “To Paris”. As shown in FIG. 6, each customer trip may include atotal amount spent while on each trip. In an exemplary embodiment, eachcustomer trip may be selectable to cause client device 110 to display acorresponding user interface, such as user interface 630.

User interface 630 may display more specific information about aselected trip, such as the trip “To Chicago”, as shown in FIG. 6. Userinterface 630 may display stops that were made during the customer trip,various images associated with the trip, transaction information, etc.In an exemplary embodiment, portions of user interface 630 may beselected to cause client device 110 to generate user interface 640,which may display additional information, such as more information aboutspecific transactions made at a particular stop.

The exemplary disclosed embodiments provide a customer with a visualrepresentation of their financial activity. The visual representationmay be used by the customer to review financial transactions,statistical information related to those transactions, geographicinformation, among other things. In addition, association of images maypersonalize the representation and provide an easy and efficient meansfor the customer to recognize activity (financial and/or otherwise).

As described herein, customer trips may be groups of transactions thatmay be particularly useful for a visual representation. For example, thecustomer may use the visual representation as a record of the trip,allowing the customer to review what happened while on the trip, use therecord for budgeting reasons, prepare an expense report, etc.

In addition, the visual representation may allow customers to easily andaccurately identify fraudulent transactions. Similarly, the images andother contextual information allow the customer to easily recognize atransaction that they may not otherwise remember, reducing occurrencesof customers mistakenly concluding that a charge is fraudulent.

The exemplary disclosed embodiments describe systems and methods forproviding a visual representation of financial activity. The foregoingdescription has been presented for purposes of illustration. It is notexhaustive and is not limited to the precise forms or embodimentsdisclosed. Modifications and adaptations of the embodiments will beapparent from consideration of the specification and practice of thedisclosed embodiments. For example, the described implementationsinclude hardware and software, but systems and methods consistent withthe present disclosure can be implemented as hardware alone.

Computer programs based on the written description and methods of thisspecification are within the skill of a software developer. The variousprograms or program modules can be created using a variety ofprogramming techniques. For example, program sections or program modulescan be designed in or by means of Java, C, C++, Objective-C, Python,assembly language, or any such programming languages. One or more ofsuch software sections or modules can be integrated into a computersystem, computer-readable media, or existing communications software.

Moreover, while illustrative embodiments have been described herein, thescope includes any and all embodiments having equivalent elements,modifications, omissions, combinations (e.g., of aspects across variousembodiments), adaptations or alterations based on the presentdisclosure. The elements in the claims are to be interpreted broadlybased on the language employed in the claims and not limited to examplesdescribed in the present specification or during the prosecution of theapplication, which examples are to be construed as non-exclusive.Further, the steps of the disclosed methods can be modified in anymanner, including by reordering steps or inserting or deleting steps.

Furthermore, although aspects of the disclosed embodiments are describedas being associated with data stored in memory and other tangiblecomputer-readable storage mediums, one skilled in the art willappreciate that these aspects can also be stored on and executed frommany types of non-transitory computer-readable media, such as secondarystorage devices, like hard disks, floppy disks, or CD-ROM, or otherforms of RAM or ROM.

It is intended, therefore, that the specification and examples beconsidered as example only, with a true scope and spirit being indicatedby the following claims and their full scope of equivalents.

What is claimed is:
 1. A system for providing a visual representation ofcustomer activity, comprising: an image storage device storing: imagescaptured by a customer and non-captured images not captured or createdby the customer; and geo-location data associated with the captured andnon-captured images; one or more memory devices storing instructions;and one or more processors executing the instructions to performoperations comprising: receiving, over an electronic network,transaction data associated with transactions made by the customer, thetransaction data containing geo-location data associated with thetransactions; enhancing the transaction data, the enhancing comprising:extracting the transaction data, and indexing the extracted transactiondata according to categories of information; determining a customer tripbased on the enhanced transaction data; comparing the enhancedtransaction data of the customer trip with the geo-location data of thecaptured and non-captured images; determining that a set of the capturedand non-captured images correlate to the transaction data of thecustomer trip; receiving a request for a visual representation of thecustomer trip; categorizing, by the one or more processors, thetransactions of the customer trip into sub-groups corresponding to stopsmade during the trip; generating, based on the enhanced transaction datathe requested visual representation of the customer trip, comprising:images correlated with the transaction data of the customer trip;information on the stops made during the customer trip; and transactionactivity associated with the stops; and displaying the visualrepresentation on a user interface of the client device.
 2. The systemof claim 1, wherein the customer trip includes consecutive transactionsaway from a home area of the customer.
 3. The system of claim 2, whereinthe consecutive transactions include each transaction that occurredafter a first transaction in the home area and before a secondtransaction in the home area.
 4. The system of claim 3, wherein thesub-groups include consecutive transactions.
 5. The system of claim 1,wherein the sub-groups are associated with at least one of a city, astate, or a zip code.
 6. The system of claim 1, wherein the one or moreprocessors is further configured to search the image storage device forcaptured and non-captured images that relate to the transactions.
 7. Thesystem of claim 6, wherein searching for the captured and non-capturedimages that relate to the transactions further includes correlating timeand date information associated with the transactions with time and dateinformation associated with the captured and non-captured images.
 8. Thesystem of claim 6, wherein the image storage device is a serverassociated with a web-based image service.
 9. The system of claim 6,wherein the one or more processors is further configured to associateone of the captured or non-captured images with the selected trip or oneof the stops made during the selected trip.
 10. The system of claim 1,wherein the visual representation further includes a map depicting alocation associated with each of the transactions made during theselected trip.
 11. A computer-implemented method for providing a visualrepresentation of customer activity, the method comprising: storingimages captured by a customer and non-captured images not captured orcreated by the customer and geo-location data associated with thecaptured and non-captured images in an image storage device; and storinginstructions in one or more memory devices and executing theinstructions via one or more processors, the instructions comprising:receiving, over an electronic network, transaction data associated withtransactions made by the customer, the transaction data containinggeo-location data associated with the transactions; enhancing thetransaction data, the enhancing comprising: extracting the transactiondata, and indexing the extracted transaction data according tocategories of information; determining a customer trip based on theenhanced transaction data; comparing the transaction data of thecustomer trip with the geo-location data of the captured andnon-captured images; determining that a set of the captured imagescorrelate to the transaction data of the customer trip; receiving arequest for a visual representation of the customer trip; categorizing,by the one or more processors, the transactions of the customer tripinto sub-groups corresponding to stops made during the trip; generating,based on the enhanced transaction data the requested visualrepresentation of the customer trip, comprising: images correlated withthe transaction data of the customer trip; information on the stops madeduring the customer trip; and transaction activity associated with thestops; and displaying the visual representation on a user interface ofthe client device.
 12. The computer-implemented method of claim 11,wherein the customer trip includes consecutive transactions away from ahome area of the customer.
 13. The computer-implemented method of claim12, wherein the consecutive transactions include each transaction thatoccurred after a first transaction in the home area and before a secondtransaction in the home area.
 14. The computer-implemented method ofclaim 13, wherein the home area is defined as an area encompassing aspecified radius around a home address.
 15. The computer-implementedmethod of claim 11, further comprising searching the image storagedevice for captured and non-captured images that relate to thetransactions.
 16. The computer-implemented method of claim 15, whereinthe images matched with the transactions are publicly-available imagesassociated with merchants at which the transactions took place.
 17. Thecomputer-implemented method of claim 11, wherein the visualrepresentation further includes a map depicting locations associatedwith each of the transactions made during the customer trip.
 18. Anon-transitory computer-readable medium comprising: storing imagescaptured by a customer and non-captured images not captured or createdby the customer and geo-location data associated with the captured andnon-captured images in an image storage device; and storing instructionsin one or more memory devices and executing the instructions via one ormore processors, the instructions comprising: receiving, over anelectronic network, transaction data associated with transactions madeby the customer, the transaction data containing geo-location dataassociated with the transactions; enhancing the transaction data, theenhancing comprising: extracting the transaction data, and indexing theextracted transaction data according to categories of information;determining a customer trip based on the enhanced transaction data;comparing the transaction data of the customer trip with thegeo-location data of the captured and non-captured images; determiningthat a set of the captured and non-captured images correlate to thetransaction data of the customer trip; receiving a request for a visualrepresentation of the customer trip; categorizing, by the one or moreprocessors, the transactions of the customer trip into sub-groupscorresponding to stops made during the trip; generating, based on theenhanced transaction data the requested visual representation of thecustomer trip, comprising: images correlated with the transaction dataof the customer trio; information on the stops made during the customertrip; and transaction activity associated with the stops; and displayingthe visual representation on a user interface of the client device. 19.The system of claim 1, further comprising parsing the enhancedtransaction data to identify missing transaction data.
 20. Thecomputer-implemented method of claim 11, further comprising parsing theenhanced transaction data to identify missing transaction data.
 21. Thesystem of claim 1, wherein the images stored by the image storage deviceinclude those associated with a web-based image service.
 22. The systemof claim 21, wherein the stored images associated with the web-basedimage service are associated with contextual information identifying atleast one of a person, place, or thing contained in the stored images.